Frederick I, king of Prussia

Frederick I, 1657–1713, first king of Prussia (1701–13), elector of Brandenburg (1688–1713) as Frederick III. He succeeded his father, Frederick William the Great Elector, in Brandenburg. Through a renewed alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I prior to the War of the Spanish Succession, Frederick obtained the emperor's approval for the elevation of Prussia to a kingdom. On Jan. 18, 1701, Frederick crowned himself at Königsberg. His extravagant expenses drained the finances of Prussia. Frederick was a patron of Leibniz. He was succeeded by his son, Frederick William I.

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